Disclaimer: I do not own Inu-Yasha or any Inu-Yasha-related characters. I only own the plot, which I have been playing with for a while.
Author's Note: I know I have other fanfics started, but Alternate Universe fanfics aren't as fun as ones that follow the plot. And the other one was kinda creepy.. Also, it's been so long that I have forgotten the plots to my others. But this, I haven't forgotten.. So, here goes another fanfic by Kaggerz, and I promise I'll update.
It's a bit short, but think of it as the prologue.
He never thought he could achieve such elation, yet indecision, at the same time. It was finally over. The journey from the Mushin Domain, throughout the land of Japan, to search for the broken pieces of a glowing pink ball, was finally ending. His friends stood behind him, slightly to the left, if the scent wafting in the breeze was any indication. The scent of wolves was mixed in with his comrades' scent, serving as a constant reminder as to why the schoolgirl was not directly by his side, even though he held the complete Shikon no Tama in the palm of his tanned hand.
No.. He was only fooling himself. It was not because of the one he called "wimpy wolf" that she stayed behind him. It was because of the torn miko clothes, dulled from the amount of ash ingrained in its fibers, that was crumbled a few feet in front of him. The scent of death was strong there, but only from the rightful decay of his past lover's sacrifice. That was what kept the schoolgirl, the fallen's reincarnation, from coming to loop her arm through his and gaze upon the group's conquest.
The wolf had given his shards from his legs, reluctantly, when the young, male taijiya perished to purify the sacred jewel. The young taijiya's sister still sobbed over his lifeless body, while the monk comforted her, arms wound respectfully around her shoulders. However, his death meant the completion of the Shikon no Tama, and the defeat of the most sinister and powerful villain in Japan– Naraku.
He finally turned to face the schoolgirl, tearing his eyes away from the miko kimono in front of him. Later, he would collect the clothing and ashes to return it to an elder miko's hut, his former-lover's once-resting-place. But for now, he would face the schoolgirl from the future, and show her the purified jewel.. A jewel that both her and the fallen miko purified together.
Her hazel eyes were glazed with tears, and her ripped school uniform hung shredded from her arms, one of which was fisted at her breast, like she was feeling for the vial of shards that prevoiusly hung around her neck, glowing whenever she needed the reassurance that she and he were connected. As her watery eyes locked with his soft, golden ones, he silently took the Shikon no Tama in his thumb and forefinger and raised it before her. It glowed even brighter with purity, making her orbs sparkle with pigments of color, while the wolf stepped closer to her side, his right and left hand men standing behind him with a small pack of non-humanoid wolves.
"It's over.." The schoolgirl breathed out, her voice thick with emotion. Was she happy it was over, or sad that she had no real purpose in his world anymore? What would this mean for their connection?
"Yeah," he replied, his own voice just as thick. For now, no one spoke of what the Shikon no Tama would be used for, though the female taijiya punctuated the silence with her choked sobs.
Slowly, the schoolgirl held out her hand, looking at the sacred jewel. He pressed it into her palm, and her fingers curved around the edge of his hand, lightly holding their palms together, while wisps of light shone from between their skin, emitted from the Shikon no Tama. The wolf's mouth snarled a bit defensively, though he allowed the contact, silently thinking about the mental state of his "woh-man."
The Shikon light flashed in their hands, and he felt a bit of heat that was not present before. Then, it was gone.
And so was her hand.
Her body quickly became translucent, until he could barely make her out, and he called out her name, confused and suddenly very fearful. The wolf jumped, startled, and demanded to know what the "inu-koro" did. Her eyes were wide and full of fear, yet she did not seem as surprised as he was.
"I love–"
And with that unfinished declaration, she was gone from Sengoku Jidai forever, and so was the Shikon no Tama's light, though the jewel itself remained .
That was five-hundred years ago.
He was currently in a large house with the wolf youkai, a kitsune he deemed his surrogate son long ago, and a pre-teen boy. He could not help but dwell on the past, as he stood before a mirror in his bedroom, fixing his past-the-waist-long, silver hair back in a ponytail at the nap of his neck. He had waited so long, hundreds of years, for this moment.
He would see her again today.
"Inu-Yasha.. Is everything ready?" A man with a long, red ponytail leaned against the doorway, his arms crossed around his chest. A long, fox-like tail caressed his leg absent-mindedly, though his green eyes gave off the sense that he was very excited about the upcoming event. Inu-Yasha slanted a glance in his direction, then again at the mirror, trying to make sure that he was perfect for the upcoming encounter.
"Almost," he muttered in reply. "Is that wimpy wolf and ningen all set?"
"Yeah, Kouga's pacing in the living room, and Mirai claims he's almost to a save point on his video game."
"Which means it could be a while." Inu-Yasha rolled his eyes, tugging the band from his hair to let it loose down his back. The schoolgirl always did like his hair.. So, it should only make sense that it was not restrained, for her.
"That's true." The kistune smiled, the tip of a fang poking out of the corner of his mouth. Shifting to stand away from the doorframe, he glanced Inu-Yasha up and down, noticing that he had not changed very much over the years. His hair was slightly more tame, ever since the invention of indoor plumbing and inexpensive brushes, but still held it's massive body and natural shine. The only notable differences in Inu-Yasha's present state was his baggy red hoodie and an equally baggy pair of black pants, which almost covered his sneakers. His ears still twitched atop his head, though the hat in his clawed right hand indicated that it would not be long before they were hidden from the public's view.
"Are you nervous?" The kitsune suddenly blurted out, startled as the man quickly snapped his head around to face him.
"Why the fuck should I be nervous?" He growled, slamming the hat onto his head, therefore messing up his neatly-combed hair.
"I think you are. Don't worry.. She'll come back with us. She loves us." The kitsune's eyes took on a glassy, sentimental look, and he lowered himself onto the edge of the inu hanyou's bed, brushing off imaginary pieces of lint from his baby blue sweater.
"Keh! I know that, Shippou. But how do we know she even still remembers us?" Inu-Yasha scooped a small box off of his drawer and shoved it roughly into his pocket.
"Because we still remember her, after five hundred long years. It's been only a few years for her."
"Then why do I feel such dread in my stomach?" Inu-Yasha mumbled, his hand still fisted in his pocket. He shook his head roughly, then swiftly crossed the room and out the door with only a few, long strides.
It had been five hundred years for him, waiting on his schoolgirl. Almost five hundred and one.. But three years for the girl. Being a half-youkai, he was able to live for much longer than a human, like the one in his living room, without aging horribly. By human standards, he would probably be in his mid-thirties, while the "wimpy wolf", Kouga, would probably be in his late twenties, perhaps thirty, even though he was much older than the hanyou. Being a full-blooded youkai, Kouga would live almost twice as long as Inu-Yasha, as would Shippou, although the kitsune only appeared to be nineteen or twenty. But that was understandable, seeing as he was only a small child five hundred years ago.
This was why the group had not gone after the girl as soon as the correct amount of years had passed since her disappearance. She would have only been seventeen then, and with him and Kouga being older now, it would have been a bit disturbing, not to mention illegal. Of course, youkai were probably illegal in general, but the few that survived the wars over the hundreds of years were intelligent enough to hide their distinguishing attributes
Inu-Yasha and Shippou entered the living room to see Kouga nervously fidgeting beside a long couch, a human male sitting on it and playing some sort of samurai game on a PlayStation 2.
"About damn time, Inu-koro," Kouga scoffed, clad in a pair of loose khaki pants and a black T-shirt. His hair was pulled back in the ponytail he claimed as his style as a pup, and like Inu-Yasha, his only feature changes were the hardening and more defining of his facial features, and a slightly colder look to his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah. Mirai, are you done with that damn game yet?"
"Almost," mumbled the pre-teen male absent-mindedly. Inu-Yasha narrowed his eyes and stomped over to the PS2, then proceeded to roughly rank on the cord until the screen went black.
"O-oi! I didn't get a chance to save and I was almost done with that level!" cried Mirai, springing to his feet and tossing the controller to the side. He looked a lot like Miroku, having hair almost identical to his, though he had Sango's soft eyes. It was obvious he was a direct descendent of Miroku and Sango, though five hundred years down the line. Luckily, the family had stayed close with Inu-Yasha, and when Mirai's parents, like Miroku and Sango, deceased, he gained guardianship. Though, he did not claim him as his son.. Just his charge to watch over, like Shippou was through the hundreds of years.
"Tough. This is much more important. Now get up. And you two," he turned to the youkai, "tuck your tails in and let's get a move on."
Shortly afterwards, the group found themselves in front of an apartment, gazing up at a third story window in wonder. "And this is where she lives, right?" Shippou questioned, trying to feel the uneasy silence.
Inu-Yasha swallowed and curtly nodded. "Yeah, we tracked her over the years and her latest address is here."
"So, are you going to go inside already, or sit out in the car and watch?" Mirai commented with a yawn, reclined in the backseat with Shippou.
"Shut up, kid," Inu-Yasha rumbled, cutting off the ignition of the Infiniti. "We're going already."
The four exited the car slowly, the hanyou and youkai taking in deep breaths to calm racing hearts caused by the excitement of the upcoming confrontation. As soon as the group reached the door, however, they all broke into a sprint up the stairs, complete with immature shoving and fighting up all three flights. Once they reached the top, they stood there, panting, for a moment, staring at the 126 on the door before them.
Her apartment number..
Mirai stared at the youkai, then shook his head at the reluctance they held towards rapping a knuckle against the flimsy, wooden door. "Oh, pul-lease. Don't tell me you guys can't even knock." He sighed, then turned and slammed his foot against the door a few times. The three others jumped, startled at the sudden, loud noise, and Shippou pulled him roughly back.
"Don't you think that was a little loud?"
"How else was she supposed to hear?"
"He's right.. Someone's coming from inside," Inu-Yasha stiffened, his ears visibly flexing from under his hat. The doorknob creaked for a moment, then the click of a lock being undone was heard. The door was slowly pulled in, and a person was visible on the other side, wearing a crisp white dress shirt and looking rather energetic and fresh.
The scent caused Inu-Yasha's heart to break for the hundredth time..
Because the human man in the crisp white shirt at the door held the unmistakable scent of the schoolgirl all over him.
"Can I help you?" asked the man, blinking innocent hazel eyes.
"You.." Kouga growled, before Shippou held up a hand.
"Akitoki? He looks like Houjou, Akitoki.."
"That guy with that cursed sword?" Inu-Yasha inquired, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Um, excuse me.." the man cut in. "How do you know my family's name? I am Houjou."
"An ancestor.." Shippou whispered low enough for Inu-Yasha's hanyou hearing to pick up, drawing another scoff from the hanyou.
It was then that they heard it.
Her voice..
"Houjou-san, who's at the door?" She came into view behind him, a vision of beauty in each of the male's eyes. She wore a simple, green dress, though it was very short, like the skirts she had worn in Sengoku Jidai every day. Her hair was waist-length and her bangs slightly more ruly, though they still held the teased look that her incarnation lacked. She peered past Houjou, to the group congregated outside her door. Each had their eyes locked on hers, boring into her very soul.
She only smiled softly, her eyes confused and unfamiliar.
"Ka.. Kagome.." Inu-Yasha choked out, becoming oblivious to everything but the woman he loved five hundred years ago. A woman who's picture still hung around his neck, with his, in a tiny golden locket shaped like a heart.
Then she said it. The sentence that broke his heart all over again. The inquiry that scattered the shards of his life even further that the shards of the Shikon no Tama they once searched tediously for.
"How do you know my name?"
Author's Note: Yes, I had to let you go on a cliff-hanger.. Which is why everything else up to this point was so drawn out. The first chapter was destined to end there. And when will the second chapter be up? Sometime before the weekend, I promise.
